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I live in Stokes County (King area); but I was wondering if anyone else has been able to pickup
WFFP-TV Danville / Roanoke / Lynchburg, Virginia, 24.1 (COZI TV)?
I can pick it up most of the time with the antenna I am currently using, but it seems to fade some after dark. This to my knowledge is the closest Cozi-tv that we have in the area.
It will also soon have Movies on 24.2. Just thought I would ask.
thanks Rhw

Hitch? Can you explain what you are seeing and what programming you are seeing it in?

The most recent example was during the Women's World Cup game, USA v. Germany. The announcers would be talking along... "That was a good play.." then the weather alert graphics come up, the picture freaks out for a sec while it's resized and then you hear "... good play" again before it continues along normally. There's also an annoying video hitch when the weather alert goes away but it's not accompanied by any repeated or missed words.

This same hiccup was also present during the US Open telecasts from the previous weekend. In fact, I remember it from months ago but I don't remember if it was DirecTV's SD or HD feed we were watching at the time. I've just gotten used to it always being the case on WGHP. But, it seemed more pronounced last night, so I thought you might like to know about it.

The other odd thing is that I don't see a corresponding issue when the weather alerts pop up during WXII & WFMY programming.

During the World Cup game just now, the weather alert came up at like 8:02. This time, when it went off, the video hitch moved forward to the point that a second or two of both video and audio was cut. The beginning had a very minimal repeat though.

Because of the use of the FOX splicer, we have to drop back to local to add the crawls. Because of the way we have to do it, the timing is slightly off between the splicer video and the crawl with network video. That is what you are seeing. We have worked on that for years. I would hope that in the near and not far future, FOX would reconsider the use of the splicer. It was great technology back when most stations have analog master controls and to be able to cheaply put HD on the air was king. Now a days only your smallest of small stations do not have HD master controls. The Splicer's time has come and gone. Even the FOX O&O's in New York and LA have this same issue, how to put crawls on the air while in network.

All opinions expressed (unless otherwise noted) are the posters and NOT the posters employers. The poster in NO WAY is/will speak for his employers.

Because of the use of the FOX splicer, we have to drop back to local to add the crawls. Because of the way we have to do it, the timing is slightly off between the splicer video and the crawl with network video. That is what you are seeing. We have worked on that for years. I would hope that in the near and not far future, FOX would reconsider the use of the splicer. It was great technology back when most stations have analog master controls and to be able to cheaply put HD on the air was king. Now a days only your smallest of small stations do not have HD master controls. The Splicer's time has come and gone. Even the FOX O&O's in New York and LA have this same issue, how to put crawls on the air while in network.

And WFXT Boston and WFFF Burlington VT have the same skip back! WFXT's skip back is much longer than I remember on WGHP or anywhere else and it does it at every local commercial break during Fox programming. Do any Fox stations not do that?

And WFXT Boston and WFFF Burlington VT have the same skip back! WFXT's skip back is much longer than I remember on WGHP or anywhere else and it does it at every local commercial break during Fox programming. Do any Fox stations not do that?

Sounds like their insertion time is wrong. There is a window there for splicing to net and splicing to local. If the window isn't adjusted correctly, weird things can happen. It is suppose to happen during the black between segments so you don't see any buffering lag that might be there. During a crawl cut-in, you will see it since there is no black to hide it.

All opinions expressed (unless otherwise noted) are the posters and NOT the posters employers. The poster in NO WAY is/will speak for his employers.

False. It's FAR from all the time. When I lived in NC, the lack of Yankees and Red Sox made me get the Directv Deportes pack because their cable Fox Deportes would show more of those games. I remember Fox 50 would show them more than Fox 8, but not much. Fox either needs to do all of those games nationally (they DO have FS1 and FS2 to stick things on) or not do them at all. At least they are all on MLB EI now.

That being said, Greensboro (and all of NC) is technically in the Nats and Orioles territory, but TWC doesn't carry the networks (MASN/MASN2) those games are on so only satellite will get you all your local RSNs - FS South, SportSouth, FS Carolinas, MASN, and their alternates. With Sports Pack, you get all the Reds on FS Cin, too. I guess you "should" have had the Wash/Balt game, but Red Sox/Yankees is much more interesting.

Yeah, well. Most North Carolinians don't give a hoot about either the Yankees or the Red Sox, but every time they play each other, if it's on a Saturday when FOX is broadcasting games OTA, there's a good chance our area will wind up with those teams. I miss the days when the TV networks had more variety in the teams they showed. Why not let the east coast see the Royals or Twins occasionally? Why not occasionally have the whole nation see the same game, like back when ABC had Monday Night Baseball?

Yeah, well. Most North Carolinians don't give a hoot about either the Yankees or the Red Sox, but every time they play each other, if it's on a Saturday when FOX is broadcasting games OTA, there's a good chance our area will wind up with those teams. I miss the days when the TV networks had more variety in the teams they showed. Why not let the east coast see the Royals or Twins occasionally? Why not occasionally have the whole nation see the same game, like back when ABC had Monday Night Baseball?

Source? Here's one that shows that most of NC (notably the Greensboro area) favors the Yankees. Red Sox or Braves second/third. No one team dominates like a market with a local team, but why wouldn't they show what is clearly most popular? It's not like you're getting the Jets-Patriots over the Panthers.

Source? Here's one that shows that most of NC (notably the Greensboro area) favors the Yankees. Red Sox or Braves second/third. No one team dominates like a market with a local team, but why wouldn't they show what is clearly most popular? It's not like you're getting the Jets-Patriots over the Panthers.

Well, that map is based on Facebook likes, so it might not reflect the opinions of the overall viewing public. But even if we accept that the map is a reasonable gauge of viewer preferences, what the NC portion of the map says to me is that this is not a pro baseball state. Rather than catering to the Yankee and Red Sox fans in our midst, MLB and FOX should accept lower ratings now in the interest of building higher interest in baseball down the road. One way to do that would be featuring a wide variety of teams in an effort to get casual fans to watch out of just curiosity. Right now, I bet a lot of marginally interested fans see Yankees versus Red Sox on the schedule once again and decide they'd rather just not watch baseball at all.

Well, believe it or not guys, I still haven't made the jump from satellite TV to OTA, but it's coming in August. How long have I been talking about this? After researching and talking with the guy who makes the HD Stacker Antenna (Denny is his name), I am going to try out his antenna. From what I've seen from others who have used his antenna, the thing is sturdy and built at top quality - none of these Chinese knock-offs. They all have had great results with it. I think I might be able to tap into the existing wiring in the house instead of having to run all new cable, although I might need to think about doing that anyway. We'll see. I'm getting ready to give oh Indirect TV a call and give them the boot.

I really need to now, because the wife is going to have to stay home with the kid, so we have to cut corners. Satellite TV is the first to go!

Well, believe it or not guys, I still haven't made the jump from satellite TV to OTA, but it's coming in August. How long have I been talking about this? After researching and talking with the guy who makes the HD Stacker Antenna (Denny is his name), I am going to try out his antenna. From what I've seen from others who have used his antenna, the thing is sturdy and built at top quality - none of these Chinese knock-offs. They all have had great results with it. I think I might be able to tap into the existing wiring in the house instead of having to run all new cable, although I might need to think about doing that anyway. We'll see. I'm getting ready to give oh Indirect TV a call and give them the boot.

I really need to now, because the wife is going to have to stay home with the kid, so we have to cut corners. Satellite TV is the first to go!

I don't know anything about the HD Stacker other than what Denny has on his web page. Just be aware that the HD Stacker does both VHF and UHF. There are only 7 VHF stations in all of North Carolina, and none in the Triad area. Only one in Raleigh (channel 11 ABC) and one in Charlotte (channel 11 PBS) that isn't receivable here because of Raleigh.

We here at the station have had good luck with two antennas split with one aimed towards Sauratown Mt for NBC and PBS and one aimed due south for all the rest. This does not require a rotor like the HD Stacker will so the cost is about the same since you are looking at an average of $250 going the HD Stacker/rotor way or two antennas split. If you have no desire to pull in distant stations, I would save the hassle of having to rotate the antenna for different stations, particularly if you plan on having several TVs on the antenna. You will more times than not run into situations where you want to watch one of the stations south and your wife will want to watch NBC to the northwest on the TV in the bedroom. Which way do you point the HD Stacker. Translated, who watches what they want? Something to think about.

Personally I have a rotor now and I am tired of moving the antenna when I want to watch a station. I am about ready to put up two new antennas (my current antenna was installed in 2002 and the rotor needs work anyway), one pointed northwest and one pointed south and split them. I really haven't had the need to use the long range capability the rotor provides in a while. In the analog days I would DX TV signals. In the digital age with so few stations on VHF, it doesn't make a lot of sense anymore.

Just my thoughts and observations.

All opinions expressed (unless otherwise noted) are the posters and NOT the posters employers. The poster in NO WAY is/will speak for his employers.

^^The HD Stacker is made by Winegard for Denny's Antenna. So the build quality should indeed be good. But in most cases, the Winegard 7698 or 7697 combo antenna should be just as good for High VHF and UHF.

But since Greensboro channels are all UHF, then 2 DB4 UHF antennas aimed at the 2 tower sites should be the best choice, as Foxeng may have recommended. Connected by a good reverse splitter such as Holland, or Ideal from Lowe's or Home Depot. MCM has their 4-bay UHF antennas on sale for $16.99 with the coupon source codes on their home page. Stellar Labs brand. This should be the least expensive and possibly best option.

You could also try a Clearstream 4 or DB8 and try to find a sweet spot between the 2 towers. And if you have dropouts or a long cable run, then possibly add a good distribution amp such as Channel Master 3410. Or a Winegard LNA-100 inline amp. But your signals may be very strong at your location, so an amp may not be necessary.

You are probably too far to receive Raleigh-Durham or Charlotte, but Roanoke, Va. may be feasible but that would involve a long range strategy.

Well, believe it or not guys, I still haven't made the jump from satellite TV to OTA, but it's coming in August. How long have I been talking about this? After researching and talking with the guy who makes the HD Stacker Antenna (Denny is his name), I am going to try out his antenna. From what I've seen from others who have used his antenna, the thing is sturdy and built at top quality - none of these Chinese knock-offs. They all have had great results with it. I think I might be able to tap into the existing wiring in the house instead of having to run all new cable, although I might need to think about doing that anyway. We'll see. I'm getting ready to give oh Indirect TV a call and give them the boot.

I really need to now, because the wife is going to have to stay home with the kid, so we have to cut corners. Satellite TV is the first to go!

The question should be in matching an antenna for your reception conditions.. A TVFOOL report should be most revealing.. If you have strong local signals, an inexpensive two-bay bowtie pointed at Sauertown Mt. should do nicely. With no reflector the rest of the stations should be fine off the back of it, depending on where in GBO you are.
My opinion is the simplest arrangement that works is the best.

The question should be in matching an antenna for your reception conditions.. A TVFOOL report should be most revealing.. If you have strong local signals, an inexpensive two-bay bowtie pointed at Sauertown Mt. should do nicely. With no reflector the rest of the stations should be fine off the back of it, depending on where in GBO you are.
My opinion is the simplest arrangement that works is the best.

Yes the simple solution may indeed be best. Particularly in a strong reception area. It is out in the fringes where things become challenging. And speaking of a 2-bay antenna, MCM has their Stellar Labs version on sale for $8.99 with coupon code. I ordered one a while back, and it is very well made and works good.

Thanks guys. Actually, my plan is to try and pick up Roanoke stations. I'm not really worried about Raleigh or Charlotte. I've ran the TVFool report and a rooftop directional antenna with preamp should do the trick for those long range Roanoke channels. I think there are a couple of VHF stations in VA, one of them I know is channel 13 out of Lynchburg. Since I'm a big Redskins fan, I'd rather shoot for Roanoke FOX, since they'll broadcast Redskins games when NC Fox will only show Panthers.

I'll probably just have the main TV connected for now. We only have two TVs in the house, and if my wife wants to watch something in the bedroom, it's more than likely something on Netflix or something she rents out of Redbox. I might can just get by with an indoor antenna on that TV if we want to watch live TV in the bedroom.

^^Seems like the Roanoke VHF channel may be hard to get. For distant UHF, a 91XG or similar antenna may be best. But if you need a combo antenna, then either Winegard 8200 or 7698 depending upon whether it is low or high VHF.

Thanks guys. Actually, my plan is to try and pick up Roanoke stations. I'm not really worried about Raleigh or Charlotte. I've ran the TVFool report and a rooftop directional antenna with preamp should do the trick for those long range Roanoke channels. I think there are a couple of VHF stations in VA, one of them I know is channel 13 out of Lynchburg. Since I'm a big Redskins fan, I'd rather shoot for Roanoke FOX, since they'll broadcast Redskins games when NC Fox will only show Panthers.

I'll probably just have the main TV connected for now. We only have two TVs in the house, and if my wife wants to watch something in the bedroom, it's more than likely something on Netflix or something she rents out of Redbox. I might can just get by with an indoor antenna on that TV if we want to watch live TV in the bedroom.

WSET channel 13 is just about impossible to get here. For FOX 21/27, (20/17) you need to be on the northside of town and a pretty good antenna because of the power level. FOX 21 is actually on channel 20 and WCWG overloads it being on channel 19) and FOX 27 is on channel 17 and it's is attenuated in this direction due to a co-channel 17 in Raleigh so it is such that it is hit and miss depending on where you are. WDBJ channel 7 (18) is the only reliable station from Roanoke. But again you need to live north of Westridge Rd to get any of the stations and not be in a hole.

All opinions expressed (unless otherwise noted) are the posters and NOT the posters employers. The poster in NO WAY is/will speak for his employers.